Hands On: HoYoverse’s Pokémon Rival Won Me Over – I Just Need It on PS5
A Push Square writer shares hands-on impressions of Honkai: Nexus Anima, HoYoverse's new title blending Teamfight Tactics-style auto-battler strategy with Pokémon-esque creature catching, after playing a closed beta on iPad Mini for a few hours. The game matters as the latest expansion of HoYoverse's gaming empire, drawing on auto-battler elements the studio has already tested through events in Honkai: Star Rail, Genshin Impact and Zenless Zone Zero, and the writer found the format surprisingly compelling despite having never played the genre before.
The reviewer praised the tactical depth of positioning creatures with distinct frontline and backline roles, and enjoyed the crossover appeal of familiar characters like Blade and Otto, though they criticised the heavy reliance on proper nouns and cluttered narrative text. A key concern raised is the gacha system, where "Trainers" (Eidoses) are likely to be paired with signature creatures similar to weapons in Genshin Impact, potentially favouring paid pulls over actual in-game hunting. The article also questions whether the mobile-focused game will ever launch on PS5, despite HoYoverse's prior console success with Honkai: Star Rail.
In short
- HoYoverse's Honkai: Nexus Anima blends auto-battler strategy with Pokémon-style creature catching
- Closed beta impressed the writer despite genre and narrative concerns
- Gacha pulls may overshadow catching; PS5 release remains uncertain
Explained simply
Honkai: Nexus Anima is a new game from HoYoverse, the Chinese studio best known for hits like Genshin Impact and Honkai: Star Rail. It mixes two genres: catching and collecting creatures, in the style of Pokémon, and "auto-battler" strategy, where players position a team of characters that then fight automatically, a format popularised by games like Teamfight Tactics. HoYoverse has previously tested auto-battler mechanics as limited-time events inside its existing games, and Nexus Anima builds that idea into a standalone title.
The game is currently in a closed beta, meaning a limited group of testers, including journalists, can try it before public release, and it has so far been played mainly on mobile devices such as tablets. It features "Trainer" characters (called Eidoses) who each pair with signature creatures, and it uses a "gacha" system, a common model in mobile games where players spend real money for randomised chances at new characters or creatures rather than buying them outright.
Why this matters is partly about HoYoverse's growing reach, and partly about how the game will be released. The studio has previously brought mobile-first titles like Honkai: Star Rail to home consoles including the PS5, so there is interest in whether Nexus Anima will follow the same path, and how its gacha system might shape the balance between free play and paid spending once it launches more widely.
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